My Kitchen, My World: Make-up Time

While I was on vacation, touring across the western US, I missed two of the countries from My Kitchen, My World: Lithuania and India. I did my best to catch up this past weekend, so here is what I created.

Lithuania

I must admit that I had to do some searching for the best of Lithuania cuisine. Typically, the choices are meat, beets, cabbage, rye bread, buckwheat, and eggs, a fairly standard eastern European-type diet. But one recipe stood out from the rest – Omelet with Cottage Cheese. Sometimes, when I make scrambled eggs, I’ll add some cottage cheese for texture and flavor, and since this was so similar I thought I would give it a try. After searching several grocery stores for dry cottage cheese (farmer’s cheese), to no avail, I just used regular cottage cheese, and it didn’t seem to make much difference. Because this bakes in the oven, it makes a quick meal, especially when paired with a salad and vegetable, so I will definitely make this a standard item.

OMELET WITH COTTAGE CHEESE
Kiauðinienë su varðke

6 eggs
200 g (3/4 cup) dry cottage cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
50 g (4 tablespoons) butter
pinch of salt

Beat eggs with salt, add sour cream and cottage cheese. Mix well. Melt butter in a baking dish, pour egg mixture and bake in preheated oven at 325F/165C, for about 15—20 minutes.
Serve with chopped onion greens or green salad. Also delicious for breakfast.

India

I’ve had some delicious Indian meals over the years, both in the US and Europe. My all-time favorite experience was at a restaurant in Frankfurt, Germany, where the owner chose the menu for our group, and we weren’t disappointed. Unlike most restaurants in the US, our dinner consisted of unique and very delicious items, and while I can’t remember all the details, I do remember it was a special meal.

Looking through the fridge, I decided to make a version of Tandoori Chicken, since I needed to use up some yogurt. I marinated chicken breasts for 24-hours in a yogurt spice mixture, then baked it in the oven (still no grill). The resulting chicken was very tender and had a lovely, spicy taste – not hot spicy but floral/fragrant spicy. (I’m eating the leftover piece tonight!) My recipe is based on the version below, except it was baked and not grilled.




Chicken Tandoori-style

4	Chicken Breasts
1	Diced onion
2 tbsp	Crushed Ginger
5 cloves	Crushed Garlic
2/3 cup	Plain Yogurt
1/4 cup	Lemon or Lime Juice
1/2 tsp	Turmeric
1 tsp	Chili Powder
1 tsp	Cumin Powder
1/4 tsp	Ground Cinnamon
1/4 tsp	Ground Cloves
2 tsp	Salt
1 tbsp	Oil
1/4 tsp	Garam Masala
1/4 tsp	Coriander
1/4 tsp	Corn Starch

• Remove skin from chicken parts. Make deep slashes in the meat with a sharp knife.
• Mix all of the ingredients together to form a marinade. Blend it thoroughly and then pour into a leak-proof plastic bag. (I just used a bowl.)
  
• Add the chicken pieces, squeeze air from the bag, and seal. Knead the bag to rub the marinade into the slashes. Place on a plate and refrigerate for 12 - 24 hours, turns the bag occasionally.
• To cook, lift the pieces from the marinade and wipe off the excess
• Grill/broil with a hot flame for about 5 minutes per side to seal in juices, then continue to cook over a lower flame until the meat is cooked through
• Garnish with side of lettuce, sliced onion rings and lemon.

TWD: Torched, At Last

Years ago I bought I small butane torch in the hopes of making crème brûlées. It was relegated to the back of one of my kitchen drawers for lack of fuel.

A few years after that, while on vacation, I paid my usual visit to one of my favorite kitchen stores. I came upon a small container of butane that, in theory, would be able to fill my torch that was patiently waiting. The container, too, was hidden away in a cupboard.

About three years ago, I bought myself a Christmas gift – eight crème brûlée dishes. All but one remained in the original packaging.

Why, you might ask, since I had all the components for this dessert, the dessert was one of my favorites, and I made it everyday at the restaurant I worked in, would I still not have taken the plunge at home? Who can say?

But, that chapter of my baking life ended today, thanks to Mari of Mevrouw Cupcake. Mari’s selection for this week’s TWD was Dorie’s crème brûlée. After reading through the recipe, I decided to third it, and then I decided to ‘play around’ a bit. I infused the milk and cream mixture with star anise, letting it sit for an hour or so, then strained it and gently mixed it with the remaining ingredients.

While the basic recipe is very easy, I have to question the baking instructions. Yes, typically, this dessert is baked in a water bath, but Dorie’s recipe uses low heat for about an hour to create the same result. After an hour, though, my custard was still liquid, so I left it in for a longer time. Two hours, total. I think a good bit of it evaporated in that time, and perhaps I could have removed it earlier, but the description in the recipe and my actual custard didn’t jibe. I’m aware that recipes are not always foolproof and can have errors, so I would suggest an editorial revisit to this particular one to double check the baking time and temperature.

The end result was still a nice dessert, and I enjoyed the subtlety of the star anise. Since the torch is now operational, I plan on making crème brûlée again, probably using a different recipe for comparison.

Given that all the TWD bakers could personalize their desserts, it will be fun to see all the creative variations. Check it out!

Minestrone, My Way

Upon returning from vacation a few days ago, I knew I needed to counteract the days and days of sitting, eating, and driving (over 3000 miles), so I was happy to see that the latest issue of Everyday Food contained a customizable recipe for minestrone. The basic recipe is good on its own, but I like the idea of tweaking it to suit your tastes or to use what is in the pantry or refrigerator.

I replaced the cabbage with Swiss chard and added the garlic up front with the other aromatics. It turned out to be one of the tastiest minestrones I’ve eaten, and I get to enjoy it for lunch all week long.

To go with the soup, I sliced up some Black Olive Sourdough bread that I had purchased at the Sunday farmers market in Lincoln, Nebraska. Le Quartier Baking Company had a booth there, and they were displaying some delicious baked goods. I couldn’t resist this particular bread, because I love kalamata olives. The ingredients are nice and simple – flour, water, starter, olives, and sea salt. The bread has a nice tang and lasted nearly a week without loss of quality. It’s too bad I’m so far away now, but it will give me a chance to experiment again with my own starter.

Minestrone, Your Way

Vegetables
+ Replace green beans with 2 cups diced zucchini or summer squash.

+ Replace potato with 1 1/2 cups peeled, seeded, and cubed butternut squash.

+ As an extra vegetable, use 1 1/2 cups frozen peas (add to soup after 15 minutes of simmering in step 3).

Leafy Greens
Instead of cabbage, choose a small bunch of robust greens (add to soup after 15 minutes of simmering in step 3).

+ Kale (tough stems removed), thinly sliced

+ Escarole, trimmed and thinly sliced

+ Swiss chard, trimmed and thinly sliced

Beans
Instead of cannellini beans, try a 15-ounce can of another variety.

+ Kidney beans, rinsed and drained

+ Chickpeas, rinsed and drained

+ Pinto beans, rinsed and drained

First Published: October 2008, Everyday Food

Cakespy's Sweet 100

Ok, now that Megan has posted, I can feel free to share my list!

Cakespy’s Sweet 100

1) Copy this list into your site, including the instructions!
2) Bold all of the sweets you’ve eaten!
3) Cross out any of them that you’d never ever eat.
4) Consider anything that is not bold or crossed out your “To Do” List.

1. Red Velvet Cake
2. Princess Torte
3. Whoopie Pie
4. Apple Pie either topped or baked with sharp cheddar
5. Beignet
6. Baklava
7. Black and White Cookie
8. Seven Layer Bar (aka Magic Bar or Hello Dolly Bar)
9. Fried Fruit Pies (sometimes called hand pies)
10. Kringle
11. Just fried (still hot) doughnut
12. Scone with Clotted Cream
13. Betty, Grunt, Slump, Buckle, or Pandowdy
14. Halvah
15. Macarons
16. Banana Pudding with Nilla Wafers
17. Bubble Tea (with tapioca “pearls”)
18. Dixie Cup
19. Rice Krispie treats
20. Alfajores
21. Blondies
22. Croquembouche
23. Girl Scout Cookies
24. Moon Cake
25. Candy Apple
26. Baked Alaska
27. Brooklyn Egg Cream
28. Nanaimo Bar
29. Baba Au Rhum
30. King Cake
31. Sachertorte
32. Pavlova
33. Tres Leches Cake
34. Trifle
35. Shoofly Pie
36. Key Lime Pie (made with real key lime)
37. Panna Cotta
38. New York Cheesecake
39. Napoleon/Mille-Fueille
40. Russian Tea Cake/Mexican Wedding Cake
41. Anzac Biscuits
42. Pizzelle
43. Kolache
44. Buckeyes
45. Malasadas
46. Moon Pie
47. Dutch Baby
48. Boston Cream Pie
49. Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies
50. Pralines
51. Gooey Butter Cake
52. Rusks
53. Daifuku
54. Green Tea Cake or Cookies
55. Cupcakes from a Cupcake Shop
56. Creme Brulee
57. Some Sort of Deep Fried Fair Food
58. Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting
59. Jelly Roll
60. Pop Tarts
61. Charlotte Russe
62. An “Upside Down” Dessert (pineapple upside down cake or tarte tatin)
63. Hummingbird Cake
64. Jell-O from a Mold
65. Black Forest Cake
66. Mock Apple Pie (Ritz Cracker Pie)
67. Kulfi
68. Linzer Torte
69. Churro
70. Stollen
71. Angel Food Cake
72. Mincemeat Pie
73. Concha
74. Opera Cake
75. Sfogliatelle/ Lobster Tail
76. Pain au Chocolat
77. A Piece of Gingerbread House
78. Cassata
79. Cannoli
80. Rainbow Cookies
81. Religieuse
82. Petits Fours
83. Chocolate Souffle
84. Bienenstich (Bee Sting Cake)
85. Rugelach
86. Hamenstashen
87. Homemade Marshmallows
88. Rigo Janci
89. Pie or Cake made with Candy Bar Flavors (Snickers Pie, Reeses Pie, etc)
90. Divinity
91. Coke or Cola cake
92. Gateau Basque
93. S’mores
94. Figgy Pudding
95. Bananas Foster or some other Flaming Dessert
96. Joe Froggers
97. Sables
98. Millionaire’s Shortbread
99. Animal Crackers
100. Basbousa

Vegan/Gluten-free Daring Bakers

Having raced home from my vacation in time for the monthly Daring Bakers post, I guess it’s time I actually posted. Since I made this over two weeks ago, let’s see what I remember.

The challenge this month was chosen by Natalie of Gluten A Go Go, and co-host Shelly of Musings From the Fishbowl. We were tasked to make lavash and an accompanying dip/salsa/spread. The kicker was that all of it had to be vegan and/or gluten-free.

For the lavash, that meant substituting sugar for honey, which was easy. I divided my lavash dough into thirds, topping it with sesame seeds,

poppy seeds,

and cinnamon sugar.

For the dip, I found a recipe in Cooking Light for a Lima Bean/Fava Bean dip that was just divine, especially warm. It was a great complement for the lavash.

Lima Bean Dip (Salsa di Fagioli)

Fava beans are traditional in this hummus-like dip. Use them, if you find them, in place of the lima beans. Serve with raw vegetables for dipping.


1 pound frozen baby lima beans or fava beans
3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 garlic clove

1. Cook beans in boiling water 10 minutes or until very tender. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.

2. Place sesame seeds in a blender; process until finely ground. Add juice and remaining ingredients; process until blended. Add beans and 1/2 cup reserved liquid; process until almost smooth, scraping sides of blender occasionally.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1/4 cup)

I enjoyed this challenge because I could cross off another recipe from my BBA. I’ve made two-thirds of the recipes from this good book. I also felt this combination would make great party food.

Since I didn’t experience any issues with this challenge, my write-up is short and to the point. I am looking forward to the October challenge, and while I’m waiting, I will be checking out how the other zillion Daring Bakers did this month.

BB: Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup

Our final Barefoot Blogger recipe for the month of September was Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup, selected by Chelle of Brown Eyed Baker. I love mushroom soup in any form, so I was looking forward to making this one. Because of time constraints this month (travel plans), I chose to make just half a recipe, and because cremini mushrooms are essentially baby portobello mushrooms, I used just creminis and shiitakes for the soup.

It’s a delicious and lovely soup. When my daughter comes home from school in December, I will definitely make it for her, and we can compare it to my usual cream of mushroom soup. Come to think of it, I should make that one again and write up a comparison. How about in October, when I’m back from vacation?

BB: Apple Turnovers

This month’s Barefoot Bloggers Bonus Recipe was selected by Anne, of Anne Strawberry. How did Anne know that turnovers are one of my favorite desserts?

I happened to have puff pastry in the freezer – Trader Joe’s came out with a new product awhile back, so I’d been looking for a good excuse to use it. I decided to make just half the apple filling, and I’m certainly glad I did because even though I over-stuffed 4 turnovers, I still had at least half the filling left. (As a testamonial, the filling is delicious eaten raw, right out of the bowl.) These were definitely a hit. The orange component smacks you with scent and flavor.


While I might wish I’d made all 8 of them, I know full well that I would have eaten all 8 of them. But with puff pastry in the freezer and all of the remaining ingredients perpetually in my pantry, I can make them anytime. Great choice, Anne!